Stephen Chow breaks silence on Kitty Zhang's contract dispute (Wednesday, September 15, 2010 Hong Kong)

Kitty Zhang (left) and Stephen Chow (right) in a publicity still from 2008's "CJ7".

Source: Channel News Asia

Hong Kong actor-director Stephen Chow broke his silence Sunday regarding his entertainment company's contract dispute with Chinese actress Kitty Zhang and expressed that he will seek legal recourse, reported Hong Kong media.

Zhang, who is signed to Chow's entertainment company Star Overseas, had taken on a role in Chinese director Wang Quan An's drama series "White Deer Plain" without the company's knowledge.

Her decision had apparently raised the ire of Chow, who discovered her and cast her as a kind teacher in his 2008 film "CJ7".

"Am I upset? I think talking about it is pointless, everything will be done according to the law," Chow told reporters.

Zhang is the second actress in recent years to have had contract issues with Chow's firm.

Chinese actress Eva Huang was discovered by Chow and appeared in his 2004 film "Kung Fu Hustle".

Star Overseas put her career on ice in 2005, after she did a photo shoot in swimwear for a magazine without the firm's consent, claiming that the photos destroyed her chaste image.

Huang felt that she was not treated fairly and wanted to terminate her contract but was later sued by Star Overseas for alleged breach of contract.

However, she eventually managed to break away from the company.

When asked if he will continue to develop new talent after the disappointment of seeing his proteges leave him, Chow, who is currently in the midst of deciding on the cast for his new film "King of Comedy 2", gave a non-committal response.

"When directors shoot a film, they use both old and new artistes. I will leave it to the company to decide if we sign new artistes," said the showbiz veteran.